Landslide Buries Bus In Colombia, 8 Children Among 34 Killed

Image Credit: Samaa English

New Delhi: A mudslide unleashed by torrential rain buried a bus and affected two other vehicles on a highway in central Colombia, killing at least 34 persons, including eight minors.

The landslide was caused due to heavy rain which hit the bus on the road between the villages of Pueblo Rico and Santa Cecilia in Risaralda province about 230 km (140 miles) northwest of the capital Bogota, the national agency for managing risks and disasters (UNGRD) said in a statement.

The bus had set out from the city of Cali with 25 passengers, and travelled 270 kilometres (170 miles) before being hit by the landslide as it passed through the Andes mountain region, civil defence officials said.

More than 70 search-and-rescue workers using backhoes and other equipment tried to reach survivors but they ended their search Monday afternoon after 24 hours. Among nine rescued alive was a 7-year-old girl found clinging to her deceased mother.

“Solidarity with the victims’ families, they’ll have the complete support of the national government,” tweeted Colombian President Gustavo Petro.